Reviewing of another groups Continuity Task

This is another groups continuity task. From watching this, I believe that the group have taken into account the 180 degree rule and also the use of many different shot lengths. However when watching the task, I believe that some of the scenes were cut to quickly. This has happened at 0.07 and 0.25 seconds. This does not help the audience to understand the theme. Furthermore after the cut at 0.24 the camera is a bit shaky. However this would be due to the position of the camera. This is not effective to the audience. Although the over the shoulder shot at 0.37 is effective as it shows the views from the opposite character. The music/ sound at 0.48 creates a tensed atmosphere as the door is closing and the character is shown from a birds eye view angle. The use of a multiple of different shot lengths and angles is effective to the audience. At the start the zoom out from the locker was slow and stady giving the audience time to view the suroundings. This is effective as the audience can see the surroundings before a close up is used. Overall I believe that this is a good continuity task, with only one or two aspects that could of made it better.

Final Storyboard

After reviewing our other storyboard we realised that we hadn't taken into account the length of the shots and also the transitions form one shot to another. This is when we sat down and discussed as a group the shot lengths and the transitions.
To start of with, we cut up our storyboard and stuck it into the wall. By doing this is enabled for me to see how important getting the storyboarding stage right can be, and how it can impact on the rest of our opening title sequence. Our first shot was going to be our production company name followed by a fade out. By fading out here it allows for the audience to now that there is a scene change and also that the title sequence is about to start. When looking at our storyboard we realised that to grab the audiences attention we needed a close up of Big Ben instead of a mid shot. This would then be followed by a black out which would then lead into the mid shot of Big Ben. After each establishing shot there is a black out to establish the change in location/view.  For example we started off with a close up of one of the pods on the London Eye. This then followed by a black out to a mid shot, black out and then a long shot. This is going to be extremely quick with only 2 seconds per shot. This will allow for this to happen so that we have enough time for the rest of the content.
At the end of our title sequence we were restricting ourselves in our titles. Originally we decided to use the music of Mission Impossible. However this meant that our titles could only be 20 seconds. This needs to be rethought about. The ending of our title sequence were the credits are displayed is going to be an image of a blueprint being drawn onto the screen, with the writing appearing over the top of it. This idea has come about from watching previous films.

Below is the image of our final storyboard:

From reviewing the storyboard it has helped me to release how many possible other ways there was of making or opening title sequence effective. Furthermore it has also helped me to realise how important it is to be able to visualise the storyboard and what the end product will be like at this stage of the process. By standing back and laying the storyboard out as above it has made it easier to see the changes that we needed to make and the outcome that this has made. Now that we have created this storyboard we need to go back to our target audience and interview them about this storyboard. One of the questions we should ask them is can they actually visualise our storyboard. If they cannot and this is the case throughout our target audience then we should go back to the storyboard and rethink what can we do to make our target audience be able to visualise our storyboard. Secondly we could also ask them about what they think could be added in or improved upon. This will enabled us to get an understanding of what our target audience thinks about the storyboard.

Problem!

Whilst reviewing our storyboard, we had to go back and do a bit more research. For example when reviewing it we realised that maybe we should look further into the shot lengths and how long each transition was. We come across this problem when we started to estimate how long we thought each shot would be we didn't actually know how long they should be. We went onto YouTube and watched many clips to help us to understand and different lengths the transitions and shots can be. This has helped us as now we can estimate how much footage we should have when following this storyboard. We had to get this right so that when it came to creating our animatic we would have the length of the shots correct and also the transitions.

Lesson Summary

 In today's lesson we as a group had a discussion with Mr Ford. When talking to our teacher we realised that we were restricting ourselves in therms of the amount of footage and titles we can have at the end of our title sequence. We had originally planned to use the first 20 seconds of Mission Impossible. However this restricts the whole of our opening as we would be restricted as to how much time we had. This made us realise that we need to change our idea for our music as we cannot be restricting ourselves.

Today we also cut up our storyboard and stuck it on the wall. By this doing it was clear to how that we hadn't taken into account our length of our shots and the transitions between them. By doing this it made me realise how much detail we needed to put into the storyboard. We decided that in between our opening establishing shot we should have blackouts. This allows for the audience to know that there is going to be a change. Furthermore I feel that we need to storyboard our animation of the blueprint so we as a group know exactly what is happening as at the moment it is a bit vague and were not exactly sure on how this is going to work. In our next lesson we are going to make many more changes and add more things in to make our storyboard much more effective.

The Sixth Sense Lesson Summary

Today as a class we all watched a documentary on the storyboard process of The Sixth Sense. The documentary in which we watched was about the director M. Night Shyamalan and his thought process in the planning stage and also how the planning stage is so important as it can impact on the overall outcome. M. Night Shyamalan said that the by using a storyboard it helps him to visualise what is going to happen during the filming process and also the end product. When shown the storyboard in which he creates they are in full detail. This includes the positioning of characters, the lightning of the scene, the types of shots used. By him planning the exact position of the characters it helps him the visualise the outcome. This also helps him to visualise how the audience will see and interpret this. This has reinforced to me how important the storyboard process actually is. Furthermore by creating a storyboard it will save time as this can be referred back too. The process of making the story board usually take 12-16 weeks. This helps in the post-production and editing stages.

From watching this documentary, it has helped me to understand how important the storyboarding and planning process is. From looking at Shyamalan storyboard it has shown me how detailed a storyboard actually needs to be. By doing this it will allow myself and my group to visualise how our overall opening of a title sequence will look like. This has made me realise that we need to go back and look at our storyboard and make sure that we can visualise how its going to look and also what is going to happen. If we can't then we need to go into much more detail in terms of the positioning of the characters and the transitions etc. By creating a detailed storyboard it will help when it comes to editing and also will make our post-production stage easier. If we did not do this, then during post production we might need to re-shot costing a lot of time Overall, from watching this documentary i t has mad me realise the importance of the storyboarding process.

Presentation On Binary Opposition

I presented this PowerPoint to the class. One reason why I choose to do my PowerPoint on Binary Opposition was because this was the topic in which I wanted to refresh my knowledge on as I couldn't remember the information. From creating this PowerPoint it has allowed me to refresh my memory and also to learn more about the topic.

Presentation on binary opposition

View more presentations from 06spuffarda.

The Grammer of TV and Film

For myself to be able to understand the language of TV and Film I looked at the basic terms. These basic terms will help me when it comes to evaluating and will help with my understanding of these terms.

Auteur: This is the french for "author" who is the director

Diegesis: This includes objects, events, spaces and the characters that inhabit them. Including things, action and attitudes which are not explicitly presented in the film but inferred by the audience.
Editing: The joining together of clips of the film into a single filmstrip.

Flashback/ Flash forward:A jump backwards and forwards in a diegetic time. When using flashbacks and flash forwards the order of the events in the plot are no longer matching the order of events.

Focus: The degree at which light rays coming from any particular part of an object or through the lens. The depth of the field through shallow focus and deep focus and racking focus.

Genres:  Types of films that are recognised by the audience and producers. These are distinguished by the narrative conventions.

Mise-en-scene: Everything that is "put in the scene". The setting, the decor, the lighting, the costumes, the performance etc.

Story/Plot:  Labelled as fabula and syuzhet, the story refers to what the audience infers about the events that occur in the diegesis on the basis of what they have been shown by the plot. The events that are directly presented within the film. The order, duration and the settings of these events.

Scene/Sequence: A segment of a narrative film that usually takes place in a single time and place, which is often between characters.


Shot: A single stream of images which are uninterrupted by editing. The shot can use a static or mobile framing, a standard or non standard frame rate but it must be continuous.

 This research will help me when it comes to analysing other work in the further for example title sequences. It will also help me when analysing as film as I will be able to use this information to help myself. This will enable me to look back at these definitions when I need to use them.

Shot Distances and Angles

When in the process of making a film, it is important that a variety of different shots length and angles are used. By using different shots it helps the audience to engage with the characters more and also keeps them interested in what is happening. Furthermore by using different shots it allows for the audience see a variety of different views.

Long Shot:  A shot where the camera is at its furthest distance from the subject. This shot show all or most of the subject which is being shot for example a person.

Establishing Shot:  Establishes the location where the film is being filmed in and is used to set the scene.

Close Up:  Here the size of the person within the frame is large allowing for the head and the start of the neck to be seen filling up most of the frame. This shows a fairly small part of the scene for example the character face as explained above.

Medium Shot or Mid Shot: The subject or actor and its setting have equal areas within the frame.  For example if an actor was standing up, you would see up until the waist of the person. Hand gestures can be seen.

Medium Close-up: In this shot the setting can still be seen. However, here the frame line passes through the chest of the actor. For example the head and shoulders of an actor.

Two-Shot: A shot of two people, which is framed similarly to a mid shot where the frame line passes through the lower part of the waist.

Point of View shot (POV): This shot is made from the position of the camera to the sight line of the actor. This allows the audience to see what this character is seeing or watching.


Shot-Reverse-Shot: A number of shots which alternate between the characters. This type of shot is usually used between some dialogue. This allows the audience to see for example the reaction of a character to what has been said.

 Shot Angles:

The angle of shot is the direction and the height at which the camera takes the scene. In a high angle the camera will look down upon a character, making the viewer feel and seem more powerful than the character themselves. A low angle shot, places the camera below the character which emphasise the importance of this character.

View-Point: The distance and angle from which the camera views and records the subject.

Selective Focus: This shot renders only a specific part of the action in a sharp focus through the use of a shallow depth. For example the shift of focus from the foreground to the background.

Titled Shot: This is when the camera is titled making the vertical lines appear slanted to the left or the right. This shot can create a sense of unease in the viewer.

Bird's Eye View: This shows a scene from directly overhead an unnatural angle. The shot puts the audience in a position of powerfulness as they are looking down upon the characters making the characters look insignificant.

Camera Movement:

Zoom: In this camera movement the camera itself does not move. The lens is focused from a long-shot to a close-up whilst the image is still being shown. This works by the subjects being magnified, and the attention is concentrated on details previously invisible as the shot tightens. When zooming out, more of the zoom or location is revealed which widens the shot.

Tracking: This involves the camera itself being moved smoothly either towards or away from the subject. When tracking in, it draws the viewer into a closer and more intense relationship between the subject. When tracking back it diverts the attention to the edge of the screen.

Panning: When panning the camera scans the scene horizontally which is typically used to give a panoramic effect or to follow a subject.

Hand Held Camera: This can produce a jerky, bouncy and unsteady image. This could create a sense of chaos. However if not done right it can produce a bad image.

From referring back to the different types of shots it has helped me to realise that when filming the opening we need to use a variety of shot distances. By using a variety of shot distances, it will hopefully keep the audience interested in what is happening. Furthermore by using these in our opening it will create variety. I have also learnt that we need to use a variety of camera movements and also camera angles.

Storyboard

After discussing as a group that we should refine our plot to make sure that it fits in with the opening two minutes, we created our second storyboard. This storyboard is our new idea with the Trafalgar Square and the alley way scene cut out of it. With this we have also included the type of shot, movement of the camera and the location which the shot is in.

As this was our second storyboard, we basically knew that we wanted to put onto it and what we were aiming for after discussion. However in our first storyboard our ideas we fresh, and we didn't really take into consideration the amount of time we had to fill. We were also not certain on a few of the ideas as these were ideas that we thought would be effective at the time and would fit in with the plot. From re-doing our storyboard, it has given me a clear image of how our title sequence it now going to look and also the order of it. Secondly this storyboard has also helped me to create a clear image of the emotions we are trying to portray throughout. Lastly, this has helped me to understand how we are going to be creating it through the use of the camera,editing, sound and mise-en-scene. Overall I am now much more aware and have a clearer image of what our title sequence will look like and also the order of which it is going to fun.

Development of our Idea

As a group we presented our idea to our teacher and to the rest of the class. From presenting our idea it allowed our teacher to understand our idea. From the beginning we knew that our ideas was big and that it would be a lot of work, although from our discussion we realised that our plot in general was far to complicated for an opening two minutes of a title sequence. Instead of establishing the story we were focusing on telling the story. This is when we realised we were trying to take on two much for our opening. If we had not thought about this, when filming and editing we would have had a problem as we were telling the story in to much detail instead of just establishing the plot. We also would have not had enough footage as each scene would not have been long enough and we would only be telling half of the story.

When we first came up with our idea, this is not what we wanted to happen. This is when we went away as a group and discussed this issue. From our discussion we have come to an agreement of what we are going to do.  We are going to stick with our initial idea, although we are going to alter and adjust the plot so that it makes 2 minutes. The first part of the opening in which we have decided to cut out is the Trafalgar Square scene. This was decided upon as on reflection of our initial storyboard we realised that this scene was irrelevant to what we were trying to establish. The second part we have also decided to cut out is with the male character walking down the alley way. Again here, the audience do not need to see him walking down the alley way. By cutting these two scenes out it has considerably cut our plot down. However, from doing this we still have enough of the plot to be able to change and develop anything that we need to do in a later stage.

From presenting our idea to our teacher and to the class it has helped us as a group to realise that we were taking on something far to big for what were were wanting to establish. I have come to realise as an individual how to develop an idea so that it is effective with less detail. This has helped me to realise that it is that we were taking on to big of a task. I also am now aware and realise that we didn't need our idea to be full of detail. It will be more effective if its shorter and does have as much detail. From this task, I believe I now understand how to develop an idea to make it much more effective and also how having less detail can be much more effective than having lots of detail and it being far to complicated for an opening.

Costumes and Props

For our thriller title sequence, we are going to need to use some props. The props in which we are thinking about using is a blueprint and also a smart phone. Below is an idea of the props in which we are going to use.

Blueprint:

A blueprint is going to be used when our character of 'Hugo' ( the criminal) opens this up onto the table in the cafe. This then leads into our title sequence. From searching different types of blueprints it has become noticeable that there is not one available to use. One reason for this is because we would like our blueprint to be of the Tower of London. Now that we have got an idea on the layout of blueprint, we will be able to base ours upon this. As a group we have decided that we are going to make our own blueprint and will be able to refer back to these two images to help us.

Smart Phone:

Another one of our props we have decided to use is a smart phone. From researching and looking at many different types of smart phones, it has become easy for us to decide which one we would like to use in our opening. The smart phone in which we are intending on using is an Iphone4. One reason why we have chosen to use this type of phone is because it is stylish and modern. It also fits in with the style we are trying to create and also matches the style of the criminal himself. This phone will also be easy to get hold of as Amy and Josh both have one.

Costumes:

In our opening for our title sequence, we will need to have two main costumes. One for the female role and one for the male role. From thinking about our character themselves, we have got some outfits in mind in which we might want them to wear. Below is a few images of the type of style and outfit we would be aiming for:

The Male:

 For the male character, we had in mind a black suit with a purple shirt and and open collar. By Hugo ( male character) wearing a black suit, it signifies to us a 'criminal' look. The purple shirt signifies royalty and also the wealthiness of a person ( in this case rich). This is a link to him stealing the crown jewels as they are royalty and also are worth a fortune. However the open collar makes him seem relaxed as well as still looking smart.

 The Female:

For the female character, we need her to be stylish and smart. As the female is working for MI5 she needs to look smart and intelligent. For this character we had in mind a black suit and a patterned top. To portray feminity we also would like the female to be wearing a skirt instead of trousers. This will hopefully create a smart and sophisticated look. 

Actors and Actresses

At this stage of the planning process we need to think about our actors and actresses. At the moment we are unsure who we want to cast for our two main characters. However we do have some people in mind.
Below are the images of the people we are considering:

Male Role:

Tameem Rahman

Daniel Pirie

Female Role:

Sophie Mooney

Chelsea Davison

When it came to choosing our actor and actress, we wanted to make sure we had a range of people to choose from. Above are the images in which we took of the two males and two females. One reason why we did was so that when it came to choosing our actors we had to take into consideration age,gender,race and ethnicity etc. This enabled us to make sure we were choosing the right stereotypes for our characters.
From reflecting upon this, we as a group have decided to cast Chelsea Davison for the female role and Daniel Pirie. We choose Chelsea as our female role as we believed she would represent the image in which we are trying to create for the MI5 worker which is stylish and well presented. We believe that Chelsea portrays all of these.
We also choose Daniel for our male role as he as already got some acting experience. This will be beneficial as he will be reliable and also will hopefully be able to give the best performance.
Continuing on with our character for our title sequence, we need an 'audience in MI5. For this we are planning to use our media class. However the only problem with this is because the rest of the class are all females. To overcome this problem we will ask other males if they will be willing to be filmed for our coursework. We choose to use our media class for this part of our title sequence as they will be the most reliable as we are in a class with them so it wouldn't have to take up any of there spare time.

So that we can get the best results possible, we will need to take into consideration and rely on our actors and actresses for reliability for when and where we need them. In addition to this, to be able to keep the continuity we need to make sure that our actors know that they wont be able to change their looks during the filming. By them changing their looks this will hinder our footage and will mean that we will have to re-shoot costing us valuable time and also their time as well.

In this stage of the process, I have now come to realise how much we need to take into consideration when it came to casting our characters. I now know and understand the depth we had to go into the make sure that we casted the right people for the character in which we were trying to create. Without casting the right person for the role, we could create the wrong image and a completing different image to what we were intending to do. Lastly, I now am aware that we had to take into consideration the age, gender, race and ethnicity etc, of the people in which we wanted to cast as our characters.

Location Shots

From the previous map, when we were in London we managed to visit all of the locations listed on that map. By visiting of the potential lcoations it helped us as a group decided what places we should use in our title sequence.
Below are the images we took and also where we decided we wanted to shoot some establishing shots.

 Big Ben/ Houses Of  Parliament

 London Eye:

 MI5 Headquarters/ MI5:

Trafagular Square:

Tower of London/ Tower Bridge:

Alley:

Cafe:

 

From taking these images, it has helped us to understand the surrounding areas and also the location in which these places are set in. These images have enabled me to visualise our title sequence in further depth and also the surrounding area.

Script

After creating our first initial storyboard, we realised that we should put our ideas down on paper for what we think our script should be like. As a group we decided that our script needed to have a description of the location and also the dialogue. By doing this we found that it helped to visualise our in initial storyboard.
The Crown Jewels After putting our ideas down on paper and creating our first draft of our storyboard, we realised that this needs to be adjusted as some of the parts for the main protagonist are to long and to wordy. We need to cut these down as otherwise when filming it wont sound right or will it will be to much for hte amount of the time that we have got. From creating this script it has given us a clearer image of what our opening two minutes will be like. However this script does need to be refined so that it is much simpler for our actors to say.

Initial Storyboard

Once we had decided upon our idea and also our locations, we created a storyboard. This storyboard shows and explains the types of shots that we are going to use from the beginning to the end of our title sequence.

From creating the storyboard, I can now see the order of our title sequence and also what technical codes we are going to use. From looking at the first few boxes on our storyboard, we have realised that maybe we shouldn't start off with an establishing shot of London. One reason why we are thinking about changing our opening of our title sequence is because from our research we realised that many crime thrillers do not start with an establishing shot of the location. However we are going to take this idea forward for now and then when it comes to the production stage we can change this if we think that it does not look right when all of the footage has been put together.

Evaluation of the week

Last week, myself and my group focused on developing our idea. We also focused on the location we have selected and which areas we wanted to shoot in within this location.
To focus on develop our idea and taking it further we created a mind map of our idea, including the ideas we had for the camera, sound,editing and mise-en-scene. Continuing on with this we also included the technical codes of our genre of film and also our ideas for the characters and what they should be wearing. This also included any additional props.
By making this mind-map, it has helped me to understand our idea in more depth and also how much detail we need to include.
This will help when it comes to actually making our title sequence as we can refer back to our mind-map for our ideas that we came up with.
During this week we also made location map. Here we circled the areas we want to shoot in. This will help us when it comes to making our storyboard as I can refer back to this.
Overall I feel that we have progressed with our planning stage of the research. One reason why I feel we have progressed as a group is because we now all know our final idea that we are planning for . I also feel that I have progressed as an individual as I now understand the use of technical codes and conventions.

Planning the specific areas of our location

As a group, after we decided upon our location, we needed to decided which specific areas of London we wanted to go to. To do this we made a list of all of the places that we thought might be suitable for our idea. We are going to visit the location listed below to see if these locations are suitable for to use for our title sequence.
Below is the map in which we created for the areas we would like to shoot in.

Development of our Idea

Once we had created our mindmap of ideas and also research into the technical codes and conventions we created a new mindmap. This included the character, plot, locations, cameras and the props and costumes in which we had in mind at the time of making this mindmap.

Here is an image of the mindmap:

This mindmap above shows our idea in detail. Our idea is to have a criminal who decides to steals the crown jewels. This is what our opening is based upon. After discussing our location we choose London for the location. One reason why we choose London for our location was because we were trying to create a stylish and modern atmosphere. From looking at the image above, I can also say that we have decided to use mid-shots, close-ups, establishing shots, tracking, panning and tilting.. These establishing shots are going to be at the very beginning so that it establishes the location that we are in.

From creating this mindmap, it has allowed us as a group to clearly see our idea in detail in terms of location, camera, story, characters props and costumes.  From creating this mindmap, it will help us when it comes to creating our storyboard. This will help us for example when we label the storyboard we will be able to remember the types of shot we are using and also then different location in which we have selected to use.

Developing Our Idea

Once we had all put together our own brainstorm, we brought all of our ideas together and discussed the different ideas that we all came up with. This then enabled use the come to a decision on a idea and start to develop our idea. We developed our idea by putting together a brainstorm of our idea so that we could see all of our ideas that we had for the idea we had chosen.
Below is an image of our brainstorm we put together:

Developing Our Ideas

 From this brainstorm, we as a group can now see our idea in detail. However after making this brainstorm we have realised that a few of our ideas may need to be altered as we continue through the process of developing. One of these is the dialogue. We originally had a rough idea of the dialogue in which we wanted  to use. However when writing this down onto our brainstorm we realised that it was to long, and we need it to be short but snappy. From making this brainstorm it has allowed us to view our idea as a whole and also to be able to see what areas of our idea we might need to re think before we go about creating our storyboard.

Crime Thriller Plot Ideas

As part of our research, we as a group decided that we would all go away and create our own mindmap of as many ideas as we could think off. This would then enabled us to put together a big mindmap of everyones ideas and take these ideas to make our final idea for our title sequence.

Below is the mindmap and ideas I came up with:

Pre-Production and Production Planning Dates

Here are the dates that we as a group need to keep to when planning for our title sequence. We need to keep to these dates so that we have even time to complete everything to a good standard and also to make sure that we complete everything thoroughly

• Brainstorming / ideas (to be blogged)- Monday 9th November
• Development of ideas - creating a shot list - Friday 13th November
• Scripting - Friday 20th November
• Storyboard - Friday 20th November
• Props / Costume / Locations / Actors and Actresses - Thursday 26th November
• Animatic / Presentation - Thursday 26th November
• Shooting Schedule - Monday 30th November

We have also decided as a group that we need to:

•  Look at the locations we have selected and take images of these different locations- Sunday 27th November 2011
• Filming of the locations and with actors with we have enough time- Sunday 4th December 2011
• Reshoot and Back-Up day- Saturday 10th December 2011

These decision have been made based on our continuity task. We realised that we needed to get all of our filming done so that we have enough time do complete the editing stage. This will hopefully allow us to produce a good quality title sequence. Furthermore we also need to be able to produce a fully annotated storyboard with details about the different types of shots. Within this plan, as a group we also took into consideration that we needed enough time to decided upon our actors, the choice of location and an animatic.

With the decisions we made as a group for taking the images and also the shoots we also decided on a backup and reshoot day. One reason why we decided upon was was so that we could always go back to our location if we felt like we needed to get another shot of a specific area that we did not get before or that it wasn't of a good standard for example if the camera was shaky. This day is also going to be our back-up day in case the weather is different on our filming day to what it is on our first filming day.

Evaluation of Technical Codes in Crime Thriller Title Sequences

From watching the four title sequences in The Departed, Memento, No country for Old Men and Heat, I have noticed many similarities between them.
The first similarity that I noticed was that they all seem to have a black background, however one of the differences is that the writing that is on the top of the black background in each movie is different. From the four I have watched the colour tends to either be blue or white. One reason why the colour white has been used is because it is clear, making sure that all of the writing can be seen and stands out from a distance. The contrast between the black background and white text makes it more striking and dramatic.

Secondly, another similarity is that all of the four title sequences in which I watched used many mid shots. One reason why I believe many mid shots have been used is so that the audience can clearly see the facial expressions of the person in shot but also some of the background and surroundings. This allows for the setting and place to be established on one shot. In addition to the above, we also see many close-ups being used. For example in 'Memento' we see a close up of one of the characters faces. By the audience seeing a close up of the characters face it allows them to distinguish how he is feeling as they can see all the emotions on his face. Furthermore, it allows for the audience to see, in this circumstance the blood on his face, which would not be as visible in a long shot. This leads the audience to be curious and suspicious, as after this you see a body on the floor with blood surrounding it. This could lead the audience to believe that he killed that man.

Throughout all four of the title sequences the most commonly used editing technique has been cutting. This technique speeds up the pace of the sequences. Another reason why cutting has been used is because it allows for a sudden change to happen quickly. However in ' No Country for Old Men' a fade is used when the titles disappear and a voice over begins, which allows for a seamless transition between the titles and the voiceover.

From completing this task, I now understand the main technical codes that have been used throughout the title sequences. This task has also allowed me to see why using these technical codes is effective and also how they help to portray the purpose of each different title sequence.
I have also learnt that the most common shot is a mid shot and the most common editing technique is cutting. I believe that in my groups opening two minutes these should both be used. One reason for this is because they have proven to be very effective and when making the opening two minutes, I need to make sure that I refer back to these technical codes.

Crime Thriller Title Sequences- Technical Codes

The Departed (2006) Title Sequence:

• Black Background
• White text- typeface- Sans Serif
• Mid shots used from the man inside the prison
• High Angle shot of the man signing a piece of paper at the desk, before they get their suits
• Music-Jazzy, Upbeat, fast- contrasts with the atmosphere of the men in the prison behind the bars.
• Mid shots of men talking from behind some barb wire
•  Loud fighting noises in the background behind the music and dialogue
• Tracking and Cuts used
• Long shot of house and the man and child walking past

Crime Thriller Title Sequences- Technical Codes

No Country for Old Men:

• Black Background
• White Font
• Voiceover straight after titles have faded out- A man telling us his story
• Cuts to different settings/ scenrey whilst the voice over is playing
• Mid shots, close ups shot used of the police officer and man walking towards the car.
• Diegetic Sound of the car driving past
• Mid shot of man talking on the phone
• Very dark but quite atmosphere
• Over the shoulder shot of the man from behind